BJP, Congress lock horns withparallel yatras to Dharmasthala | Bengaluru News

Bengaluru/Mangaluru: The political tussle over Dharmasthala escalated Saturday as both the ruling Congress and opposition BJP launched parallel yatras to the temple town, each seeking to establish its narrative on the controversy.Even as BJP continued with its ‘Dharma Rakshana Yatra’, Congress flagged off a counter-mobilisation under the banner of ‘Dharmasthala Chalo Yatra’. The Congress campaign was led by former Shravanabelagola MLA MA Gopalaswamy, who accused BJP of deliberately misleading the public on the issue of mass burials.“The govt has ordered a probe into the matter based on a court directive. We have no intention to bring disrepute to the temple or the Dharmasthala trust,” Gopalaswamy said. He added that BJP is creating confusion among devotees for political gains.Meanwhile, BJP intensified its mobilisation. Around 1,000 party workers from Bommanahalli, the constituency of BJP MLA Sathish Reddy, travelled to Dharmasthala Saturday. “This is a show of solidarity and an effort to protect our Hindu temple from unwarranted attacks,” Reddy said. The party workers from Nelamangala and Tirthahalli also visited the place in large numbers.The BJP workers, many wearing saffron scarves and exhibiting flags, undertook the journey in hundreds of cars and other vehicles, converging on the temple town. Heavy vehicular movement along the Bengaluru–Hassan highway since morning threw the traffic out of gear, with several stretches witnessing jams.BJP functionaries maintained that their ‘Dharma Rakshana Yatra’ is aimed at giving a “befitting reply” to those spreading propaganda against Dharmasthala and Hindu religious beliefs.Party sources said thousands of workers from different districts are expected to arrive in the coming days.With both parties holding rallies and processions towards Dharmasthala, security has been tightened in and around the temple town to avoid any untoward incident.The simultaneous yatras have turned Dharmasthala into the epicentre of a political battle, with Congress seeking to contain the fallout of the probe into claims of mass burials and BJP attempting to consolidate support by projecting itself as the defender of faith.QuotesWe are neither on their (Dharmasthala) side nor on this side. We are on the side of justice. We are simply saying religious matters should not be politicised. The investigation is still on-DK Shivakumar, deputy CM——-BJP is doing politics in the name of religion in connection with the Dharmasthala case. Lord Manjunatha Swamy himself will punish them. We don’t even know who this so-called mask man is. For us, Manjunatha Swamy is important. We will come out of this blemish-DK Suresh, former MP and Bamul chief——— BOXSecurity beefed up at Sujata Bhat’s houseBengaluru: Police security was beefed up at the Banashankari residence of Sujata Bhat, who claimed her daughter Ananya had gone missing in Dharmasthala. The decision to provide security was made after Bhat expressed concern to a senior police officer of a special investigation team (SIT) probing the alleged Dharmasthala burial case, about her safety.“Bhat also contacted jurisdictional police, saying strangers, some claiming to be media persons, are barging into her house without permission, disturbing her privacy. She said such visits by strangers could harm her life,” a senior police officer said.A platoon of Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) was deployed at Bhat’s house, and the lane of her house barricaded. “We are not allowing any strangers to visit Bhat without her permission,” police said.